Hair and scalp protectors



Dec. 31, 1957 A. s. MACH HAIR AND SCALP PROTECTORS Filed May 15, 1956 INVEN TOR. Adele Swz'fz Mack "*ATTORNEY United States Pflfii 2,818,014 ANDSCALP PROTECTORS Adele Swift Mach, Douglaston, N. Y. Application May 15,1 956 Serial'No. 584,958

4 Claims. (Cl. 132-9 The invention relates to improvements in hair andscalp protectors primarily adapted to be worn durmga treatment .known asstreaking, tipping or frosting involving anapp'lication ofhair'bleaching and hair coloring solutions. The principal object of theinvention is to provide an efiicient and practical device whichetfectively prevents the bleaching and coloring and other solutions fromreaching and wetting the scalp and portions of the hair other than thestrand or strands to which the solutions are to be applied, therebypreventing discolorations or damage of the hair which is not to betreated.

Numerous scalp protectors have been developed in the past particularlyfor permanent wave treatments. Most of these protectors consist offlexible sheet material, for example rubber, and comprise a plurality"of apertures, preferably fianged apertures through which strands ofhair to be curled can be pulled and which provide a reasonably tightseal, either by compression of the-flanges or otherwise. One'other knownformof scalp protector comprises aplurality of normally sealed aperturesthrough which strands of hair; may be pulled. ;In doing so, the seal isbroken, and after use the protector must be discarded because many ofits seals are broken. The device is of relativelycomplicatedconstruction which also makes it expensive considering that it cannot bereused.

The invention provides a hair and scalpprotector which is so constructedthat strands of hair may be treated on any portion of the scalp withoutdestruction of special seals. The protector is so constructed that itprovides a reliable seal about strands to be treated and completeprotection for portions of the hair and scalp which are not to betreated.

The various objects, features and advantages of this invention willappear more fully from the detailed description which follows,accompanied by drawings showing, for the purpose of illustration, apreferred embodiment of the invention. The invention also resides incertain new and original features of construction and in the combinationof elements hereinafter set forth and claimed.

Although the characteristic features of this invention which arebelieved to be novel will be particularly pointed out in the claimsappended hereto, the invention itself, its objects and advantages, andthe manner in which it may be carried out, may be better understood byreferring to the following description taken in conneetion with theaccompanying drawings forming a part of it in which:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a scalp and hair pro tector in the formof a shaped cap or hood;

Fig. 2 is a cross section through the two major plies of the protector;

'Fig. 3 is a section similar to Fig. 2 of a modified form ofconstruction; and

:ethylene, polystyrene and other synthetic resins.

Fig. 4 is a sectional View illustrating the use of the protector.

In the following description andin the claims various details will beidentified by specific names for convenience. The names, however, areintended to be generic in their application. Corresponding referencecharacters refer to corresponding parts in the several figures of thedrawings.

The drawings accompanying, and forming part of, this specificationdisclose certain specific details of the invention for the purpose ofexplanation of broader aspects of the invention, but it is-understoodthat the details may be modified in various respects without departurefrom the principles of the invention and that the invention may beapplied to other structures or incorporated in other forms than the oneshown.

The protector may be produced in any desired form, either-.as asubstantially flat sheet which. is" then shaped about the head, as inprior permanent wave practice, or in the form of a preshaped cap.

Figure 1 shows the protector in the form of a cap 10 comprising acentral crown portion 11 and two lateral side portions 12, only one sideportion being visible.

The crown and side portions are secured together along seams 13 eitherby'stitching or by heat scaling of the material of which the portionsare composed.

I The panels or portions of which the protector is composed comprise twomajor plies of a plastic sheet material, preferably transparent,slightly elastic and tear resistantQMany synthetic sheet materials areavailable for this purpose, some having a synthetic rubber base, such asPliofil'm, others being composed of vinyls, poly- These she etmaterials-may be adhered together along marginal seams by sewing or-byheat sealing in order to secure the various portions of the protectortogether and also to finish the edges. 7

The severalpanels of the protector are composed of two major plies asshown in Figures 2 and 3, one ply being numbered 14, the other ply beingnumbered 15. A thickness of between two and three thousandths of an inchfor the major ply was found practical and convenient. If sheetmaterialof that thickness is not readily available, each major ply may becomposed of two minor plies as shown in Figure 2. The major ply 14 iscomposed of minor plies 14' and 14" and the major ply 15 is composed ofthe minor plies 15 and 15". A minor ply thickness of one point threethousandths of an inch was found practical and convenient, resulting ina total thickness of the crown and side portions of the cap of fivepoint two thousandths of an inch, except at the seams.

Each major ply has a plurality of perforations therethrough, preferablyproduced :by punching at regular intervals. The perforations of the twomajor plies are so arranged that the perforations 16 in the major ply 14are offset with respect to the perforations 17 in the major ply 15. Inthis manner no direct passage exists for liquid to pass through theprotector 10 since each major ply acts as a seal or closure for theapertures in the other major ply.

Preferably the punching of the major ply is done in such a way that thepunched-out portion is not entirely removed but remains attached to atleast one small portion of the circular cut, as shown at 16 and 17. Suchpunching practices are known in the art. The punchedout disc forms asupplemental seal before removal but the discs may readily be displaced'by the application of a suitable tool, for example by a hook of thecrochet hook type, as will be explained.

A convenient range of spacing of the apertures in each ply was found tobe between 10 and 20 millimeters.

In order to secure the major plies relatively to each other in theposition in which their respective apertures are offset, as described,the plies are also secured together along additional marginal seams 18so that the otherwise unattached and normally somewhat slippery plies donot slide into a position in which the apertures coincide.

The protector may be originally completely flat, or shaped, and may beprovided with conventional means for securing it to the head, tieportions 19 of double thickness material being shown for this purpose inFigure 1. In the illustrated example the ties form a continuation of areinforced lower edge portion 20 along which the material is folded backupon itself and secured along a marginal seam 21.

The use of the protector is best explained by referring to Figure 4showing a portion of the scalp protector 10 applied over the hair, thescalp line being represented by 22. The hair 23 is covered and protectedby the protector 10, but the operator may withdraw individual strands ofhair by means of a tool 24 resembling basically a crochet hook. Thistool is inserted first through an aperture 16 in the outer major ply 14and then through the aperture 17 in the inner major ply 15, whereafter astrand of hair is withdrawn through the two apertures. Location A showsa thick strand of hair 25 divided into two substrands 26 and 27withdrawn through adjoining apertures 17 in the lower ply 15 and thenthrough adjoining apertures 16 in the upper ply 14. The two substrands26 and 27 which emerge through the protector may then be treated, forexample by bleaching with, or without subsequent dyeing and, at the endof the treatment, appear as a single thick strand of contrasting colorin the wearers hair. In location B a single strand 28 is withdrawnthrough the protector. This single strand after treatment represents athin strand of treated hair. Even thicker strands of hair may be tintedby parting one heavy strand into a greater number of substrands, as isreadily apparent. However, a primary use of the protector is in theproduction of many thin strands of contrasting color.

Due to the elasticity of the sheet material, the sheet material forms atight seal around each strand of hair. The offsetting of the aperturesin the two major plies provides a supplemental seal for the aperturesthrough which hair is withdrawn, as well as a main seal for all theapertures through which no hair is withdrawn.

The diameter of the apertures may be selected according to individualpreference. Apertures of the order of 3 to 5 millimeters were foundconvenient.

Time observations have shown that in the streaking of hair an averagetime saving of one to two hours is effected per head treatment. Theprotector may be reused and its initial low cost is practicallynegligible if divided by the great number of treatments which may begiven with the same cap before it needs replacing.

What is claimed is:

l. A protective covering for hair and scalp, particularly for use in thebleaching and dyeing of strands of hair, the covering comprising aninner and an outer sheet of flexible sheet material, each sheet having aplurality of perforations therethrough; and means for securing thesheets together along marginal seams in such a way that the perforationsin inner sheet are offset with respect to the perforations of the outersheet.

2. A device as set forth in claim 1 in which the perforations areincompletely punched so that the punchedout portion normally occupiesthe space within the hole, unless displaced therefrom.

3. A protective cap for hair and scalp, particularly for use in thebleaching and dyeing of strands of hair, the cap comprising two sideportions and a central crown portion, said side portions and said crownportions each comprising two sheets of flexible sheet material, eachsheet having a plurality of perforations therethrough; and means forsecuring the two side portions to the crown portion along seams and forsecuring together the two sheets of each portion along marginal seams,the two sheets of each portion being so disposed that the perforationsin one sheet are offset with respect to the perforations in the othersheet.

4. A cap as set forth in claim 3 in which the perforations areincompletely punched so that the punched-out portion normally occupiesthe space within the hole, unless displaced therefrom.

References Cited in the tile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS

